Nondrip fluid dispensing vessel



Dec. 29, v1953 J. G. HElM 2,664,230

NONDRIP FLUID DISPENSING VESSEL Filed July 23, 1948 mum/roe.

dncos 6. HIS/M BY H/S-HTTORNEYS.

HH RR/S, K/EcH, FOSTiR & HARE/6 Patented Dec. 29, 1953 v UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE ateczso nonnnir FLUID DISPENSING VESSEL Jacob Glieim, SanGabriel, .Qalif.

Application Juily'23, 1948, Serial-N0. 40,212

means adapted lac-prevent the dripping of fluid therefrom down the sidesof the vessels when thegflow :of fluid through the pouring openings iscurtailed .or cut of? by returning the vessels to their :vertical'position.

it is icommon knowledge that housewives iro quently encounter difficultywith vesselscontaining such viscous fluids as syrup or molasses because, when the pouring of such viscous fluids from the Vessels iscompleted, a suflicient amount of the ffluid remains upon the ends ortops of-the pouring openings of the vessels to "permit the fluid to rundown the sides and to create asticliy deposit thereupon which must beremoved to prevent the soiling :of the surfaces "upon which the vesselsrest whenin storage.

It is, therefore, a primary ob-iect of my inven tion'to-providemeansadapted to be incorporated in the pouring openings of a wide variety offluid containing and dispensing vessels which are adapted to prevent theretention upon the ends or tops :of the pouring openings or fluids afterthe pouring action has :been stopped and which thus prevent the depositof isa'id'fiuids upon-the sides of the containers.

Since'vessels of the type referred to are frequently of a disposablenature and :are thrown away when the fluid contents thereof have beenexhausted, it is necessary that a drip eliminating means utilizedinconjunction with the pouring openings of said vessels be easily manufactured, readily installed in association with the pouring openings, andof sufficiently moderate cost to permit the utilization of such dripeliminating means upon such disposable containers.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a non-drip elementwhich is low in cost, may be readily fabricated, and can be incorporatedupon a disposable container because the cost is so low as to be anegligible 'factor in the total cost of the container.

as 'a matter of fact, most containers or vessels for fluid usuallyembody :a sealing means incorporated in the closure provided thereforwhich is adapted "to seal off the contents of the vessel or containerfrom contamination and evaporative contact with the ambient air.

.It is another object of my invention to pro vide a drip eliminatingelementwhich is adapted to be incorporated in the closure fora containerwith which it is associatedwhich is also designed to iunction as a fluidseal to prevent the com termination of the contents of the vessel, andwhich also serves to prevent the evaporation of Said contents theambient atmosphere.

On the other 'ihancl, there are many containers w c fall in the class of,multi-nse containers which are adapted to be reused over and over againuntil the container is .so damaged that it no longer can properlyperform the function for which it was originally intended. Typical of(21. (ZZZ-571) such .containers are mill: bottles, motor oil containers,and :a'wide variety of similar vessels. It is particularly desirablethat such containers be provided "with a ,drip eliminating means adaptedtopreyent the drip-ping or the fluids contained therein down the sideofthe bottle or container.

since the good 'will engendered toward the purveyor of :the materialenclosed within the container by the association therewith or the dripeliminating element will be a considerable factor .in encouraging therecurrent purchase of that particular brand of the product. Sincecontainers "of this type frequently utilize temporary but effectivediscardable closure means, it is desirable to provide a drip eliminatingmeans which will also serve as a seat for said closure means.

A vfurther object of 'my invention is the provision of drip eliminatingmeans adapted to be utilized with containers which are designed to servea multi-use purpose and which is rovided with an integral seat adaptedto receive a reusable or cliscarda-ble closure means or cap designed toseal off the contents of the container from contamination or contactwith the ambient atmosphere.

Since most of the difficulty encountered by housewives is :in thepouring or such viscous or oily fluids as cream. salad oil, syrup,molasses,

or the like, it :is desirable to provide a pouring vessel such as apitcher or cruet in which such fluids are stored for table use havingembodied permanently therein a drip eliminatingelement provided inaccordance with my invention.

It is, therefore, a further object of my inven tion to provide a pitcheror cruet, or similar table service device, having permanently insertedinthe pouring opening thereof a drip eliminating element adapted topreventthe retention at the pouring opening of the fluid contained therein whenthepouring action has ceased.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent from aconsultation of the following specification and the accompanyingdrawing, which is for the purpose of illustration only, and in which:

Fig. '1 is a perspective view showing a typical disposable containeradapted to be utilized as a container for syrup, molasses, or the like,and. having associated therewith the disposable form oi'myinvention;

Fig. .2 .is an enlarged, vertical sectional View taken on broken line2-2 of Fig. l, and showing the pouring opening of the vessel with fluidbeing poured therethrough:

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view similar to Fig. 2 and showing thepouring opening of the vessel after the -pou-ring action had ceasedwiththe vesselrin the erect position;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the incorporation in thepouring opening of a multi-use containeror vessel of a drip eliminatingelement;

Fig. 5 is a top plan fragmentary detail view 35' showing theincorporation in the lip of a Pitcher of a drip eliminating element; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line G% of Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawing, I show a single use, disposable container it),such as is intended to serve as a receptacle for syrup, molasses, saladoils, and similar fluids, which have a tendency, when poured from theopening of such a vessel, to be retained at the edge of the opening andto drip down the side of the vessel when the pouring action iscompleted. The fluid containing and dispensing vessel it includes a baseportion l l and a generally cylindrical side wall i2, which terminatesin a neck portion it, which provides a pouring opening is adapted topermit the dispensing of fluids from the vessel.

The neck portion it includes an inner surface l5, an outer surface l5,and an end surface H. In the act of pouring, the fluid passes over theinner surface l as it flows through the pouring opening l i, contactsthe end surfac E land, frequently, adheres to the end surface i'. anddrips down the outer surface it when the pouring action has beencompleted.

In order to prevent the dripping of the fluid remaining on the endsurface ii of the pouring opening l d, the container is provided with anannular pouring element it having a central opening 29 adapted to permitthe passage of fluid therethrough. In the present embodiment of myinvention, the pouring element S8 comprises a ring or annulus offlexible material, such as paper, which is coated with a wax, or similarsubstance, which is unwettable by the fluid being poured from thecontainer.

The pouring element l8, which is adapted to prevent the dripping offluid down the sides of the container when the pouring action has beenterminated, is designed to be incorporated in the closure, not shown,and to supplant the customary seal ordinarily utilized to seal off thepouring opening and the contents of the vessel from contamination andcontact with the ambient air. The pouring element l8 secured to the endsurface 5? of the pouring opening it by means of glue provided on theunder side of the pouring element 58, but any conventional adhesive maybe utilized to secure the pouring element !3 to the end surface 5. Whenthe closure is removed from the pouring opening M, the pouring element58 remains upon the end surface f! of the pouring opening it and servesto eliminate the dripping tendency encountered in the pouring of theaforementioned fluids. In addition, it also serves, when the closure isapplied, the function of sealing off the contents of the vessel fromcontamination and contact with the ambient air. Since it is constructedof paper, and since it serve the aforementioned dual function, it isobvious that the cost of incorporating such an element in a disposablecontainer is negligible and will clo ely approximate that of conventional seals ordinarily incorporated in the closures of suchcontainers.

As may be best seen in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawing, the inner edge ofthe pouring elen ent i8 overlaps the inner edge of the end surface H andthe outer edge of the pouring element overlaps the outer edge of the endsurface I? of the neck portion l3 of the container Ill. However, it ispossible that the pouring element be so dimensioned that the inner andouter edges thereof be substantially flush with the inner and outeredges of the end surface i'i. The pouring element I8 is so disposed uponthe end surfac ll of the neck [3, which provides the pouring opening l4,that the inner and outer edges thereof extend radially of the verticalaxis of the container ID, and thus permits the overlapping relationshipof the inner and outer edge portions thereof in relation to the endsurface ll of the neck l3.

Another embodiment of my invention is shown in Fig. 4 and is adapted tobe incorporated in the neck portion 23 of a multi-use container, such asa milk bottle, and which may be permanently positioned thereupon ifdesired. The neck portion 23 of the multi-use container, not shown infull, provides a pouring opening 22 which is defined by an inner surface24, an outer surface 25, and an end surface 26.

A pouring element 21, which in the present embodiment is in the form ofan annular cap 28 incorporating a central opening 28, is positioned inthe pouring opening 22 of the neck portion 23, and includes a downstruckinner edge portion 32, and a downstruck outer edge portion 33. Thedownstruck inner edge portion 32 overlaps the end surface 26 of the neckportion 23 and con tacts the inner surface 24 of the neck portion 23.The downstruck outer edge portion 33 overlaps the end surface 26 of theneck portion 23 and contacts the outer surface of the neck portion.Thus, a secure installation of the pouring element 2'! within thepouring opening 22 is provided.

Since containers such as the one under discussion must be sterilizedbefore being reused, in many instances, it is desirable to provide apouring element 21 which is of such a nature that it can he firmlyaffixed to the neck portion 23 of the container and which yet can bereadily removed prior to the sterilization process and sub-- sequentlyinstalled upon the neck portion 23 when the sterilization process hastaken place. If desired, the pouring element 21 may be sterilized by aprocess which will not inhibit the efficiency of the drip eliminatingfunction thereof. For example, the pouring element 2! may be formed of aplastic substance having resilient characteristics which will cause itto cling to the neck portion 23 of the container, and which will also beunwettable by the fluid which is ordinarily dispensed from saidcontainer.

As may be readily discerned from Fig. 4 of the drawing, the downstruckinner edge portion and the downstruck outer edge portion 33 extenddownwardly substantially axially of the vertical axis of the pouringopening 22. To facilitate the closing of the container by means of aconven tional milk bottle cap 35, or similar closure, the downstruckinner edge portion 32 of the pouring element 21' is provided with anannular groove 36 adapted to receive the edge of the cap 35. However, ifit is desired to close the pouring opening 22 by a stopper closure 36 itis easy to do so since that portion of the pouring element 2'! providedby the downstruck inner portion 2-32 below the annular groove 34 willprovide suihcient surface to permit a close seal to be made between itand the stopper closure 36 and to prevent the contamination of thecontents of the container.

One of the most annoying facets of the drip ping problem involved in thedispensing of such fluids, as indicated above, arises when the pour ingof such fluids is attempted at the table from such vessels as pitchersand cruets adapted for the temporary storage of the fluids. There isshown in Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings an embodiment of my inventionadapted to prevent the dripping of fluid from the lip of a pitcher or acruet when the pouring thereof has been termi nated. The pitcher lip 38is substantially of men-- ate configuration and is constituted by aninner surface 39, an outer surface 4|, and an end surface 42.Permanently installed in the pitcher lip 38 and adapted to prevent thedripping of fluid therefrom is a pouring element 43, which is formedfrom a material which is unwettable by the fluid which is usually storedin and dispensed from the container. The pouring element G3 in cludes aninner edge portion 44 and an outer portion 45. The inner edge portionlid overlaps the inner surface 39 of the pitcher lip 99, and the outeredge portion 45 overlaps the end surface 42 of the pitcher lip 38 andmay also, if desired, overlap the outer surface ii of pitcher lip. Whenfluids are dispensed from a container provided with such an element asthe pouring element 43, the passage of fluid thereover in the dispensingprocess will naturally occur. However, when the pouring action isterminated, any drops of fluid which might have a tendency to accumulateupon the pouring element are unable to adhere thereto and are returnedinto the body of the container, thus preventing the accumulation of suchdrops and their subsequent dripping down the side of the container.

I thus provide by my invention a pouring element which is adapted to beincorporated upon disposable containers, multi-use containers, and inpermanent dispensing vessels, and which is adapted to prevent theaccumulation of drops of the fluid dispensed therefrom upon the endsurface of the pouring opening thereof, thus preventing the dripping ofsuch retained fluids down the sides of the vessels when the pouringaction has been completed.

The various pouring elements disclosed are adapted to be incorporated ina wide variety of fiuid containing and dispensing vessels, and aresusceptible of being manufactured from a wide variety of materials whichare substantially unwettable by the fluid which it is intended be storedin and dispensed from the vessels. Such pouring elements, as indicatedabove, may be of a disposable, semi-permanent, or permanent naturedepending upon the application in which the pouring element is utilized.Pouring elements also may be provided with means adapted to permit thereception thereby of closure means to close the vessel, or may bedesigned to serve the auxiliary function of a sealing means inconjunction with said closure means.

Although I have shown and described preferred embodiments of myinvention, it will be understood that certain portions thereof may bechanged to perform the same function without departing from the spiritof my invention and, therefore, I do not intend to be limited by thespecific form described, but desire to be accorded the full protectionof the following claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination: a fluid containing and dispensing vessel, said vesselhaving a base portion and a side wall defining a fluid containingchamber, said side wall terminating in a pouring opening to permit fluidto be dispensed from said vessel, said pouring opening having an inneredge and an outer edge and a top wall defining the termination of saidside wall; and an unwettable pouring element adapted to be secured aboutsaid pouring opening comprising an annular disc having an inner edgeportion overlapping the inner edge of said opening and a outer edgeportion overlapping the outer edge of said opening, said inner and outeredge portions lying in substantially the same horizontal plane.

2. In combination: a fluid containing and dispensing vessel, said vesselhaving a base portion and a side wall defining a fluid containingchamber, said side wall terminating in a pouring opening to permit fluidto be dispensed from said vessel, said pouring opening having an inneredge and an outer edge and a top wall defining the termination of saidside wall; and an unwettable pouring element adapted, to be secured tosaid pouring opening comprising an annular disc having an inner edgeportion and an outer edge portion, said inner edge portion overlappingthe iner edge of said opening and said outer edge portion overlappingthe outer edge of said opening, said inner and outer edge portions ofsaid annular dlSC extending substantially radially of the vertical axisof said opening and lying in substantially the same horizontal plane.

3. In combination: a fluid containing and dispensing vessel, said vesselhaving a base portion and a side Wall defining a fluid oontaimngchamber, said side wall terminating in a pouring opening to permit fluidto be dispensed from said vessel, said pouring opening having an inneredge and an outer edge and a top Wall defining the termination of saidside Wall, at least a portion of said pouring opening being ofsubstantially arcuate conformation; and an unwettable pouring elementadapted to be secured about said pouring opening having an inner edgeportion overlapping the'inner edge of said opening and an outer edgeportion overlapping the outer edge of said opening, said inner and outeredge portions lying in substantially the same horizontal plane.

4. In combination: a fluid containing and dispensing vessel, said vesselhaving a base portion and a side wall defining a fluid containingchamber, said side Wall terminating in a pouring opening to permit fluidto be dispensed from said vessel, said pouring opening having an inneredge and an outer edge and a top wall defining the termination of saidside wall, at least a portion of said pouring opening being ofsubstantially arcuate conformation; and an arcuate, unwettable pouringelement adapted to be secured about said pouring opening having an inneredge portion overlapping the inner edge of said opening and an outeredge portion overlapping the outer edge ofsaid opening, said inner andouter edge portions lying in substantially the same horizontal plane.

JACOB G. HEIM.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,077,707 Hartman Nov. 4, 1913 1,611,443 Hothersall Dec. 21,1926 1,654,185 Mrozek Dec. 27, 1927 1,833,971 Lloyd Dec. 1, 19311,837,618 Gutman Dec. 22, 1931 1,918,117 Martin July 11, 1933 2,044,689Henchert June 16, 1936 2,105,027 Davis Jan. 11, 1938 2,214,004 White eta1 Sept. 10, 1940 2,313,278 Straub Mar. 9, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS NumberCountry Date 174,886 Great Britain Feb. 9, 1922 675,139 France Oct. 29,1929

